Implementation of Teacher-Simulated Patient Pedagogy for Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery Undergraduate Students in Preoperative Assessment Learning

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the impact of teacher-simulated patient (TSP) pedagogy on Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) students' preoperative assessment skills. MBBS students beginning their clinical practice in the Department of Anesthesiology were randomly assigned to either the interventional (TSP) or conventional (Standard Education, SE) groups. The SE participants completed a lecture-based learning module. In the TSP group, a teacher-simulated patient scenario was designed to provide MBBS students with a realistic simulated patient experience. The MBBS students' performance was evaluated by assessing their skills using the mini-Clinical Evaluation Exercise (Mini-CEX) tool. The MBBS students in the TSP group scored significantly higher in their Mini-CEX mean overall clinical competence scores (7.11±1.09 vs. 7.58±0.60; p = 0.027) and mean domain scores (6.88±0.54 vs. 7.65±0.48; p = 0.000). The implementation of TSP methodology has led to improved skill performance and enhanced domainspecific competencies among the MBBS students. Incorporating Team-Based Learning (TBL) pedagogy in medical education programs can be a valuable approach to enhance MBBS student learning outcomes and better prepare them for real-world clinical practice.